


The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few (Or the One)

by rafamarkos5998



Series: Son of Shiva [1]
Category: Batgirl (Comics), Batman (Comics), DCU (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: (probably), Angst, Barbara Gordon is Oracle, Bruce Wayne is Batman, Cassandra Cain and Jason Todd are Siblings, Cassandra Cain is Black Bat, Damian Wayne is Robin, Duke Thomas is Signal, Gen, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Hamilton References, Hurt Jason Todd, Hurt No Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I want to get used to writing them, I'm Bad At Tagging, I'm Bad At Titles, I'm trying out a concept here, Jason Todd and Damian Wayne Meet in the League of Assassins, Jason Todd is Red Hood, Out of Character, POV Cassandra Cain, POV Third Person Limited, Past Character Death, Probably too much, Protective Cassandra Cain, Protective Jason Todd, Sad Ending, Self-Sacrifice, Self-Worth Issues, So much angst, Stephanie Brown is Batgirl, Suicide, They seem like a good duo, Tim Drake is Red Robin, Writing Exercise, because I've fallen back in love with it, no beta we die like jason, said concept being a Cass and Jason story, that'll play a bigger part in future installments
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:28:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25429192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rafamarkos5998/pseuds/rafamarkos5998
Summary: A gun with a single round, a tied-up Batfamily and an ultimatum. You know, normal Joker stuff. Cass is sure that Oracle, Batwoman and Signal can get them out just fine. Except that this time, Jason's acting a bit strange.
Relationships: Batfamily Members & Jason Todd, Cassandra Cain & Jason Todd, Death of the Endless & Jason Todd, Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd & Damian Wayne, Stephanie Brown & Jason Todd
Series: Son of Shiva [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857853
Comments: 20
Kudos: 413





	The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few (Or the One)

**Author's Note:**

> I have had this scenario inside my head for a long, long time. It's good to finally get it down. It's not exactly what I was imagining, but when do writing endeavours ever go according to plan?
> 
> EDIT NOTE 5/8/2020: I want to properly acknowledge that one of the conceits of this work, the heavy quoting of Hamilton, was inspired by the story [You Knock Me Out, I Fall Apart](https://www.archiveofourown.org/works/24251614) by [CutePricklyCactus18](https://www.archiveofourown.org/users/CutePricklyCactus18/pseuds/CutePricklyCactus18). While this series is not going near the direction of that one in terms of plot, that particular stylistic choice was inspired by this piece. I'd like to give credit for that where it's due - it was after reading that piece for the third time that Jason's last line in this fic popped into my head, and I went on from there.

Cass slowly wakes up, with a splitting headache that she instinctively pushes to the back of her mind in favour of taking stock of her surroundings. She quickly begins to catalogue everything she can sense.

First, she checks for injuries on herself. She doesn't feel any. She can feel the cuffs on her hands, and a few slight exploratory movements show that she can't break out of them quickly, if at all. The large pillar her arms are bent around isn't making matters easier. She was sedated, but apparently, no attempts were made to hurt them.

It's damp. And hot. And humid. And there are no natural light sources visible. It's a large area with pillars present in the middle of the room, like the one Cass is bound to. The spacing and the faded letters indicate that it's at least designed to be an underground car park. However, judging by the state it's in, it's probably been lying abandoned for a while. Cass is proud of her inner detective for working this out this fast.

There are people with their hands wrapped around the pillars and bound, just like herself. And all around them, a... _battery_ of machine guns pointed at them. She remembers Jason teaching her the word when they were listening to Hamilton.

Batman, check. Nightwing, check. Robin, check. S- _Batgirl_ , check. Red Robin, check. Red Hood, check.

Everyone accounted for. Everyone the Joker had asked for, that is.

He'd taken 77 students hostage and proposed a trade for the 7 aforementioned Batfamily members. Cass would have laughed at how bad the attempt at a joke was if the stakes weren't that high. He'd probably thought that they would go down the _we don't negotiate with terrorists_ route and brought sedatives to make them comply with whatever scheme he was dreaming up.

Considering that Oracle, Signal and Batwoman had been left out of the count, there was no reason to not try and play by the Joker's rules for the moment and count on the three left out to get them. Batman had been nervous about it, but Red Hood refused to support any plan that put the kids in danger - well, more danger than they were already in. Besides, the three left outside should be enough to handle anything the Joker can come up with. They had no reason to believe that he had other A-list villains backing him up on this.

Cass doesn't really understand the Joker. Trying to read him only leads to confusion. He, as Ste- _Batgirl_ says, does not 'add up'. She cannot fathom what he is or what he wants. She wonders what exactly led to his obsession with those that wear the Bat on their uniform. It couldn't have been anything good, considering that he'd killed her little brother for it.

She notices Red Hood twitching. Evidently, he's been awake for a while.

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Nightwing, Red Robin and Batman start to move. They're waking up.

"Well, from what I can see, we're all fine, and the Joker hasn't done anything remotely outlandish by his standards. Yet." Nightwing says.

"Stop trying to jinx us." Red Robin grumbles.

Cass decides that it's time to fully enter Black Bat mode now... with them all waking up, the Joker will probably get to what he is planning. They need to be on the top of their game.

She notices Batgirl and Robin waking up. That makes all of them.

The Joker has left their cowls and suits on. Considering the size of the guns trained on them, no kind of armour will save them if they start firing. Their only options now are a rescue from the people left outside or a colossal mistake by the Joker.

"All of you, report your current status," Batman growls.

"What's the point, B? It's the Joker, he doesn't start giving us opportunities to foil him until his plans near the climax. Right now, we're at the halfway point at best." Nightwing replies.

Black Bat isn't entirely sure if Nightwing is joking or not. She doesn't see how anything about the Joker can be remotely funny.

Batman frowns at him. Nightwing rolls his eyes in response. The frown deepens.

"Fine... I got a splitting headache and strained wrists from trying to get out of these restraints," Nightwing replies.

"Same as Nightwing. I can't access my wrist computer, so the only way we get these machine guns out of commission is an Oracle intervention." Red Robin grumbles.

"Nothing to report, Batman," Robin says proudly.

"Apart from the fact that you're stuck there like the rest of us." Red Robin quips.

"It is but a temporary setback. Unlike the rest of you, I will be out of these restraints shortly." Robin shoots back.

"Before Nightwing? I find that extremely hard to believe." Red Robin says.

"Boys, shut it," Batgirl says tiredly. "I'm trapped too, B."

"Stuck." Black Bat says.

"Same." Red Hood says.

"So, it seems we are all trapped for now. Keep on the lookout for any new developments. I'm guessing your comms have stopped working as well, so we're cut off from any support. We need to rely on each other here."

"Well, this has turned out to be a subpar outcome, Hood. You have again demonstrated your inability to handle such critical operations properly. If not for your insistence on not endangering children, we would not be trapped here." Robin declares haughtily.

Hood remains silent.

That... is unusual. Hood never lets insults like that lie.

Black Bat turns to face him and takes a proper look this time. His shoulders are slumped, his head rests on the pillar, and his entire body lies there bonelessly. To those who only see the surface, he might look lazily unbothered, but she can see further than that - can see that the posture is screaming _fear-sadness-resignation_. And for some reason, peace.

"Hood?" She asks, tentatively.

He does not respond. Instead, he cocks his head to the side, as he continues staring into the blackness of the underground parking lot. He can see something - no, _someone_ \- there.

"Wait, is he actually being calm about this?" Red Robin asks. "Hood, are you dying?"

At another time, Cass would probably appreciate the humour in the statement. However, looking at Hood's current state, it sounds less and less amusing the longer it rankles in her mind.

"Who... do you see, Hood?" She asks again.

He continues to remain silent.

She ends up having to push the conversation aside for a later time, thanks to the Joker chooses that exact moment to walk in.

He struts in, like a peacock, and Black Bat feels her head begin to ache again thanks to the utter nonsense radiating from his movements - any and all attempts to decipher meaning are rendered obsolete. His smile is wide - too wide, and it doesn't compute, because she can't really see any real joy in him. He looks around at all his captives, with his eyes lingering longer than usual on Hood. His smile grows even wider.

"Ladies and gentlemen, bats and birds, welcome to-"

"Cut it out, Joker. Get to the point already." Nightwing says, with a long sigh.

"Skipping the foreplay, are we? My, my, aren't you an impatient brat!"

"It's been a long week. I don't want to deal with this shit for too long."

"Well, today's your lucky day, because have I got just the right retirement plan for you!" he explains, as he pulls a gun out from behind his back. "If any of you are willing, you can bid Nightwing adieu and put him out of his misery. Although knowing you guys, it's probably going to be Red Hood over there. Because dear not-so-little Hoody is the only one of you who dabbles in this on the reg, isn't he?"

Black Bat scoffs internally at the thought. Yes, Hood has killed. Yes, he still believes in killing for justice or vengeance. But he will never kill one of his family, let alone do it at the Joker's behest. (A part of her tells her that is untrue, that he has tried to kill others in the family before, but it is drowned out by what she sees, what she _knows_ to be true, that the Red Hood is a good man.)

"But I'm getting ahead of myself here... Let's go back. The rules are simple. This right here, is a gun." He says, gesturing to the six-shooter in his hand.

"Yes, and you're wearing a blazer, and restraining us with handcuffs." Batgirl interrupts, sounding exasperated. "Can we get to the important part?"

The Joker looks offended. "Firstly - that's rude. You shouldn't interrupt the host. Secondly, you're wrong on both counts. I'm wearing a jacket, and you're being restrained by magical bindings. They're a set I landed thanks to the generosity of a few well-connected friends that share my goals for the day."

Black Bat notices Hood stiffen slightly out of the corner of her eye - another thing to file away for discussion later. Deal with the immediate threat first.

"Back to the point. There's seven of you here. That's too many. I already killed one of you, and he's managed to walk that off. It was fine when he was against you - actually, it was better than that! He managed to get under your skins! But now, he's becoming boring. He's even begun cooperating with you Bats! On top of that, dear Daddy over here has gone on an adoption spree and collected a whole brood of 'troubled souls' here. No can do."

The Joker twirls the gun around in his hand. Everyone tenses.

"One of you needs to go. I'll let the rest of you walk once that's been done."

Black Bat knows that's she's probably imagining it, but the room seems to grow colder.

"Yep, that's it. That's the deal. One of you dies at your hands, the rest walk free. I think you'll have noticed the audience I have procured for you - they're not going to be satisfied unless you deliver. And don't worry, I'll leave you guys to do your pointless brooding alone. Call me if you need it, I'll stay in touch."

"You are an even bigger fool than I thought you were, clown. We're stuck here. How are we supposed to shoot someone - not that any of us, even Hood, would stoop so low as to kill their family - when we are immobilized by what you claim are 'magical bindings'?"

The Joker laughs. It's a short, shrill sound, grating on the ears - like nails on a chalkboard, as Batgirl calls it. "Ask Hoody there, he's got it figured out. Don't you, my little birdy?"

Hood does not respond to that either. He merely looks off to the side, as the Joker walks away.

Cass decides that it's time to ask the Hood what he's looking at. But before she can say a thing, he begins to talk.

"So, considering that you're here, I'm guessing there's no easy exit out of this, is there?" Hood asks the person he's been looking at.

"What's wrong with him?" Red Robin whispers.

"As is quite evident, he is hallucinating. Your observation skills are even worse than I imagined, Dr-Red Robin." Robin replies.

"Well, you owe me a favour," Hood says. He tilts his head upwards - whoever he is talking to is walking towards them. They're probably shaped like a human, Cass thinks. "No, _I_ don't owe you anything, you owe me more than a couple of favours for pimping me out to your flock of associates." He pauses. "Yes, it does count as pimping me out, you got paid by them for giving them time with me. Doesn't matter what currency the payment was in, you still owe me." Off to the side, she notices everyone flinch.

"Well, you do remember what I want, don't you?" He asks. He pauses for a while - likely listening to a reply. "Why do I need to repeat it, exactly? Dramatic effect?" Another pause. "Okay, calm your tits, I'll say it."

"Say what, Little Wing?" Nightwing asks.

"I want to rest. That's what I want, nothing. No heaven, no hell, no anything. Just let it end." Hood declares. "There, I said it. Happy?" He cocks his head to the side. "Cool. Now hold on for a bit, need to sort out my affairs first."

"Sort out your affairs - are you actually dying?" Batgirl asks.

"Hood. Who were you talking to?" Batman growls out.

"Death." He replies. "She owes me - no, don't fucking shake your head like that, you _do_ owe me, you're not wriggling your way out of this one. Anyway, she's here, and that means somebody has to die. She usually shows up in person for interesting subjects. Like us."

"Okay, I have several questions about that," Batgirl says, her voice and body filled with disbelief.

"Not lying." Black Bat says.

"Doesn't mean he's not delusional." Red Robin shoots back.

"Well, I know I can't exactly prove it, but I'm not lying. Or hallucinating. It's Death. She's here, in all her punk rock glory. You can ask John Constantine later, he'll back me up on this. But honestly, I'd rather not waste my time."

A sizzling sound comes from behind Hood, and then the sound of metal striking metal. Then, Hood brings his hands forward, with the broken cuffs uselessly dangling off his wrists, the chain broken.

"It's magical. You guys might want to investigate exactly how the Joker got a hold of this kind of gear." Hood says, nonchalantly.

"Yeah, that's not the main concern here," Batgirl says. "The disturbing shit you've been saying takes priority."

Hood shrugs his shoulders. He takes off his helmet, walks ahead to the centre of the room and picks up the gun left behind by the Joker. As he looks at the gun, Black Bat can see him checking the safety, the barrel, the bullet itself, but all Cass can see is that her brother is about to die.

She understands the look on his face. It is one she remembers seeing on her own face years ago, when she was convinced that she needed to fight Shiva, even if it killed her. She remembers how she had been indifferent to dying - how she had sometimes even welcomed it, thought of using that to atone for what she had done.

"Little brother. Please, no." She pleads. She has to make him listen, make him understand that he doesn't need to throw himself away. Her father - _their_ father, has too much pain inside him to bear any more. Hood _needs_ to stay alive, for him.

"Sorry BB, no can do. Someone needs to go. Might as well be me." He lowers his head, closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. His body radiates an aura of calm.

In one smooth movement, the gun is now levelled at his temple. The room grows colder. 

And after a brief pause, a chorus of pleading voices erupts.

"Oh my god."

"What the fuck, dude?"

"No, no, no, Little Wing, please stop, this isn't funny."

"Cease your foolishness immediately!"

"No, son. No."

"Actually, yes." The Joker's voice rings out, louder than everyone else. "Not exactly what I expected, but it's a creative solution you've found there. I'm on board. Fire when ready."

"Don't listen to him, Hood." Nightwing pleads. "You don't need to do this. We'll make it out just fine. Just put the gun down."

"Not all of us, pretty bird. Death's here to collect." Hood replies, his voice small and sad.

He takes a deep breath, like a politician before a speech.

"I, Red Hood, being of mostly sound mind and body, and acting under extreme duress and fully cognizant of the nature and extent of all my property and of this disposition thereof, do hereby declare this pathetic monologue to be my Last Will and Testament, and hereby revoke any and all other wills and codicils heretofore made by me." He pauses and takes a deep breath. "Not like there was anything to revoke, on account of me being dead."

"Son, don't do this." Batman - no, _Bruce_ , pleads. 

"Don't sweat it, B. I always knew he was going to get me eventually. It was just a matter of time." Cass flinches at that declaration - as does everyone else. "I've made my peace with it."

"Todd, cease your foolishness. Signal and Batwoman will be here shortly, and we will be fine." Damian says. He is trying to sound arrogant, but Cass can hear the desperation in his voice, can see it written all over him.

"Shut it, Demon Brat. We're not weaselling our way out of this one. Also, code names in the field, remember?" He smiles. It is a small, sad smile. He doesn't look or sound annoyed, just tired. "Anyway, I can't exactly remember most of the standard declarations, so just assume that part is there. Moving on to the important stuff."

"Replacement, you're my personal representative. You're a good kid. Hopefully disposing of my stuff isn't too troublesome for you. If you can't do it, the alternative is Agent A."

"There's a safe in my primary safehouse, the one on Park Row. You guys already know the address. In the bedroom, under the floorboards next to the dresser, there's a set of phones and a file. That's for BB over here."

Cass sees her brother turn to her, opening his eyes. "I wanted to tell you, but it never felt like the right time to bring it up. The short version is, we're siblings. By blood."

Cass freezes in place, as she tries to grapple with what her brother - her real brother!- is saying. She wants to believe that it's a lie, but she can see that it isn't.

"I'm not exactly up for a long discussion on the exact specifics - the file will give you most of the important info, and if you want to know more, you can try and get in touch with Talia, Sandy or Cain with the phones. Whatever you want to ask, they'll answer." He swallows.

"I know they weren't great parents, but they're not pure evil. Not like the Joker is. Yeah, I know, that's a pretty low bar, but they'll talk to you. You might need it."

"Cass doesn't need to talk to a bunch of psychopathic assassins. She has us." Steph growls angrily.

"No offence, Blondie, but Sandy's her mom," Jason replies, turning to face Steph. "Despite the whole Lady Shiva shtick, she's not entirely heartless. Believe me, I know. I trained with her. Well, if getting beat up repeatedly until I come up with something counts as training, that is. But that's beside the point."

He hangs his head down and closes his eyes again, as he resumes reciting his will.

"In the dresser in my bedroom, there's a small package wrapped in a yellow scarf. That's all yours, Blondie. Hope you like it."

Steph looks like she's been struck. Ignoring her reaction, Jason keeps going. 

"Inside the kitchen, under the sink, there's a set of burner phones. Those are for the Demon Brat over there. You can use them to get in touch with your mom. Do call her, she misses you."

"That will be unnecessary, Todd. We will get out of here unscathed, and I promise to call her and talk to her. Cease your foolishness. _Please_." Damian says, his voice trembling uncharacteristically.

"There's a safe in the living room, hidden in the wall behind the TV. The codes are present in my file in the Batcomputer. There's a record of all my other tangible assets in there. Anything that I haven't already promised to Cass, Dami or Steph is yours, Tim. Use them as you will."

Tim opens his mouth to reply, but no words come out. His cheeks are moist and glistening with tears.

"Sorry Dick, I don't have much to give you. You take my room at the Manor back. It was yours all along. I'm sorry that I came and took what was supposed to be yours."

"No, Little Wing, don't say that, _don't say that_ , we can fix this! We're going to make it out of here just fine, just wait a while, Little Wing, don't do anything stupid, please, please, Little Wing, listen to me!" Dick cries out, trying to stop his brother from slipping away before his eyes. His bonds rattle, but do not budge.

"B, I'm sorry for trying to kill you, and your family. I'm sorry for being a shitty son. You were better off with me dead. I'm sorry for coming back. And I forgive you for the shit you did to me."

"No, son, don't say that, _never_ say that. You're my son. My _son_. I love you. I've always loved you. Pride is not the word I'm looking for, son. You don't need to give me anything. Just stay alive. Stay alive." Bruce says, voice cracking.

"Sorry B, can't do that. You can't save everyone. Don't beat yourself up over this, I'm fine with this. If this saves you guys, it's worth it. And remember, I love you. Always have, always will. No matter what."

Bruce tries to call out to his son, but no words come.

"Love all of you. Stay safe, 'kay?"

"No, Jaylad, please stop!"

"I have the honour to be, your obedient soldier, J. Todd."

Cass closes her eyes, unable to watch what is unfolding before her.

BOOM.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope that it wasn't too bad. I'm not sure what modifications I could make here. Please do comment, any criticism is welcome (constructive or otherwise).
> 
> I mostly wanted to look at what Cass would think about Jason being recklessly self-sacrificial, given her history with that kind of behaviour. I believe that she would understand why Jason is being the way he is, but I'm not sure if the rest of her thoughts align with her canon depiction. I'm mostly working off of the pre-52 stuff I've read, and I'm aware that I'm probably missing a lot of stuff since I haven't read all of it.
> 
> In this story, I do know Cass is being unfair to Jason when she wants him to live for others, but I believe that is how she would look at it, considering that she views Bruce and the idea of the Bats as something worth giving yourself up to. Not to mention that surrendering herself to the idea of the Bats is what led to her rehabilitation (at least, that's my understanding of it).
> 
> I've been thinking about writing a much bigger story with these two at the centre, but I wanted to try writing a simpler story using them and see whether I can make it work. Although, now that I've got further story ideas for this fic, I don't know where I'm going with either.


End file.
